


They were his people... and I didn't know what to do...

by Messenger



Series: The day they found the concentration camp [2]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Broken, Brotherhood, Canon Jewish Character, Concentration Camps, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Extended Scene, Friendship, Gen, German, Hurt/Comfort, Jewish Character, Jews - Freeform, Male Friendship, Nazis, Religion, WW II, Webster POV, World War II, episode: s01ep09, s01ep09, why we fight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-02
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2020-04-06 15:25:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19065370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Messenger/pseuds/Messenger
Summary: How could Nazis do something like this?They were innocent people...They were his people... and I didn't know what to do or say...What it was like for David Webster to see the concentration camp and see how his friend and brother Joseph Liebgott fell apart?





	They were his people... and I didn't know what to do...

**Author's Note:**

> Hey!
> 
> A while ago I got the idea to write what happened in my story "They were his people..." from Websters pov and here is the result.  
> Hope you enjoy!

They had settled in a little town in Germany and not long after they found something utterly unbelievable but not in the good way. It was a giant camp/prison which would later be known as a concentration camp.

 

Others were looking around and trying to process everything they were witnessing right now. While others looked around or helped the prisoners David Webster had been asked to stay close to the gate and surveil who walked in and out of the camp and while he was doing that his friend Liebgott was talking to the prisoner and translating his words to Major Winters and the others.  
Even though David's duty was to surveil everyone who where close to the gate he kept looking at Joseph Liebgott and his superiors. As they were talking David noticed that something changed in Liebgott. Suddenly it seemed like the man didn't know how to process what ever he had just heard and that made Webster feel worried.  
What could have the prisoner said that would make Liebgott look so frozen but at the same time upset and in some ways Webster saw anger in the man he knew as one of his brothers. What could it have been that made him angry? Sure he was the tough type of guy but he didn't get angry. Webster remembered only one time when he had seen Liebgott get actually angry. It was when Gonorrhea had called Sobel a son of Abraham and Liebgott took offence...

Wait... could it be... that his brother's weird and worrying behaviour had something to do with being a Jew?  
While Webster thought about it he looked around and he saw a star on many of the prisoners' clothes and it looked a lot like the Star of David. Could it mean that they were Jews? What else could it mean? But if almost everyone in here was Jewish why they were here? It couldn't be possible that they all were criminals, could it? No it couldn't.  
So that ment that there was only one some what reasonable reason in Websters mind. These people and these Jews were here just because Nazis wanted to get rid of them. Could it be that this was extermination camp of some sort? Well what else could it be if it wasn't a prison or camp for basic criminals? Was there any other option?

 

Some time past and Webster got the confirmation that all the prisoners with the Star of David really were Jews. He was still at the gate, letting the prisoners out and once again he heard someone call Joseph Liebgott's name and the man ran to his superiors who had called his name.  
This time they were close enought so Webster could actually hear what they were saying. He heard the order that Liebgott should tell the prisoners that they have to go back to the camp so that their eating et cetera could be monitored.

”I can't tell them that, sir.” He heard Liebgott say while he was looking at Lewis Nixon in the eye. He saw the sorrow in Winters' eyes as he told Liebgott that he had to do it. He watched as Liebgott was withing his own thoughts for a second untill he told them that he would do it. 

As the man was walking to the truck Webster really wanted to stop him and say something or do something but he didn't know what to do. How could he comfort his friend? He did not know and so he just stood there and looked as Joe got on to the truck and demanded the prisoners attention.

For a moment everything turned silent and everyone listened what Liebgott had to say. Webster himself understood German not as well as Liebgott but enough to understand his words unlike his other paratrooper brothers. He heard and felt the hurt and desperation in Liebgott's and the prisoners' voices. 

 

After Liebgott had said what he had to the other soldiers started to move the prisoners back to the camp. Webster watched as Liebgott fell to the seat next to him, how he run his fingers through his hair and started go cry. He was sure that this was the first time since he had met Liebgott that he saw the man cry and it felt so wrong. Not that crying would ever be a good thing except crying for happiness. Seeing Liebgott cry felt so wrong. He was the tough guy. The one who showed the others that they could continue even after losing their comrades and even if the situation where they were in seemed hopeless. He was the one who was kinda rough to everyone but no one took it in the wrong way. Well maybe every now and then some replacement would but that was understandable since they didn't know him as his band of brothers did. 

 

Webster's thoughts were interrubted as he heard someone call Joseph by name. It was the prisoner whose with Joseph had talked earlier. Joseph turned to see the prisoner who called his name.  
”Es ist in Ordung. Ich verstehe.” Webster heard the prisoner say to Joseph. ''It's okay. I understand' Webster translated the words in his mind.  
He watched as Joseph nodded slightly and then the prisoner walked back to the camp with the others.

As Webster watched this short interaction he felt this rush of need to go to his comrade and comfort him in some way and because of that he almost run to the truck and hoped on. He sat Joseph's left side and for a short moment he just looked at the man. Now that he saw him up close he looked so broken. Slowly he moved his right hand around Liebgott's back and he squeezed the man's right shoulder gently. As he did that he felt the man lean little closer to him. His crying had turned to a little sobbs as he clearly tried to stop himself from crying more. Webster decided that he wouldn't say anything simply because he didn't know what to say and so he just sat there and rubbed the man's back gently every now and then. 

 

After a moment their other brothers got back to the trucks as well. It was time to go back to the town. None of them said a word. Some of them gave a glance of worry towards Liebgott and some really wanted to say something but they seemed to be in the same trap as Webster himself. They didn't know what to say and so they didn't. However what they did was try to get close to the sobbing man and asked the replacements to move furter away which they did. 

 

”It's time to go back to the town!” Someone yelled and the trucks and people who had to walk started to move. From behind his hands Joe gave a glance towards the camp one last time. Sure this was the last time he saw the camp but he would never forget it, ever. It would stay there, in his mind for the rest of his life. Most likely giving him nightmares time to time. 

 

 

The rest of the day Joseph Liebgott did not talk to anyone. He did not even give a glance towards anyone. He had completely shut down and it worried not just Webster but everyone who knew the man in one way or another. 

As Webster was cleaning his boots he saw Liebgott sitting in the far away corner of the room and while he was cleaning and watching his brother closely Eugene Roe sat next to him.  
”Man, I hate seeing him like that...” He commented with a wave of worry in his voice.  
”Me too...”  
”Should we do something?”  
”I really want to but to be honest what can we do? I think it's best to let him be for a moment. However we are not going to leave him dealing with this completely alone.”  
”Yep... I can't even imagine what must be going through his mind right now.”  
”They were his people... and I didnt know what to do... I just watched for a far as he first learned most of the prisoners were Jews and then I just stood there again when he had to tell them that they had to go back to the camp... Didn't even try to do anything...” The rag which Webster used to polish his boots fell from his hand and he felt that he was about to cry.  
”Hey, hey! Don't do that to yourself! You are the one who has done the most for him. You went to him when you saw him break, you were the one who comforted him right then and there. We should be the once who blame ourselves for not doing anything. Sure we tried to show that we are here for him but to be honest it's really hard since it's Liebgott we are talking about.”  
”Yeah well it's true that he is not the sentimental type. Not at all.”  
”And yet you knew what to do or maybe not knowingly but you did somehow and I'm sure he appreciates it even though he probably thinks that he should be the tough guy all the time and being comforted by someone is not good.” 

 

Later in the evening when all the men where having dinner in a big dining hall Webster saw Joe come in. He observed the man and saw others do the same as he went to get food.  
'He looks little bit more like himself' David Webster tought as he put his hand up to signal Joe to come sit with him and the rest of the E-company.

Joseph saw the hand, walked strate to him and sat down to David's right side.  
”How are you doing?” He wispered to the man and he gave David a short look, took couple sips of his soup and clearly thought about what to say. David was sure that the man was not okay, he was broken and he would have a scar in his heart for the rest of his life. However he didn't look as bad as he was earlier. There was hope for him. David Webster was sure about that. 

”I'm okay.” Liebgott finally gave his answer.  
'And he would be' though David. He would be there for him no matter what.  
'They were his people... and I'll try to do everything I can to help him live with this experience.'


End file.
